What Are the Treatments for Hemochromatosis?

Hemochromatosis is a hereditary disorder in which the body absorbs too much iron. The excess iron can be deposited in any organ, but tends to accumulate in the liver, heart and pancreas. In its later stages, hemochromatosis can develop into serious diseases and eventually cause heart failure. Treatment can remove the iron but it doesn't cure the disease.

Definition

• As the carrier of oxygen in the red blood cells, iron plays a critical role in the body and is a nutrient we need to include in our diet. When we eat food containing iron, our bodies absorb about 10 percent of it. The rest is trapped in special cells that store it in the lining of the intestine until natural shedding of the cells occurs a few days later and the iron leaves the body. People with hemochromatosis absorb about 30 percent of the iron they ingest and this is an overload of iron that the body is not able to handle. The excess iron ends up in the tissues of major organs, especially the liver. Once there, it can not be naturally eliminated from the body. The iron damages the organs and eventually they can't function properly. Primary hemochromatosis is hereditary but secondary hemochromatosis can be caused by other diseases. According to the Mayo Clinic, it is one of the most common hereditary disorders in the U.S.

Symptoms

• The symptoms usually don't appear until around the age of 30 to 50 in men and after the age of 50 in women. When they appear, they may be general, such as fatigue and abdominal pain. Other symptoms include arthritis, low functioning thyroid, high blood sugar and no menstrual periods.

Complications

• In later stages of untreated hemochromatosis, serious conditions develop. Excess iron in the liver may cause permanent scarring, which is called cirrhosis. The cirrhosis can then lead to other complications such as a build-up of fluid in the abdomen, toxins that affect cognitive functioning and liver failure. The risk of developing liver cancer also increases. Excess levels of iron in the heart can cause an irregular heartbeat or even heart failure, and too much iron in the pancreas may cause diabetes. Excess iron in the skin causes it to turn bronze or gray.

Treatment

• Treatment can't cure the disorder but it can reduce the amount of iron and prevent or delay organ damage. The primary treatment is therapeutic phlebotomy along with appropriate treatment of any complications. Iron chelation, which uses a medicine that binds with iron and helps carry it out of the body, may be an option for patients who can't tolerate phlebotomy.

  Therapeutic phlebotomy is just like donating blood. Little by little, blood is removed until the iron reaches a normal level. The amount of blood removed depends on age, overall health and underlying complications, but when treatment begins about a pint of blood will be removed once or twice a week until the levels are normal. After that treatments must continue--for the remainder of the person's life--but the frequency is reduced to four to six times a year.

Lifestyle Changes

• The most important lifestyle change is to avoid drinking alcohol because when combined with excess iron, the result will be even more liver damage. Dietary changes will also help to maintain healthy iron levels. Be sure to avoid foods that are high in iron and don't take multivitamins that include iron. Also limit the amount of vitamin C in your diet because it helps the body absorb iron.